"The result is always bigger then the sum of the parts."
When I craft music the range of feelings and emotions is similar to game developers I've noticed.
We first find a moment of inspiration and that becomes the source of an upcoming effort.
That often starts with forming a goal, or a desired outcome. Perhaps it was a drawing, or a quick UI sketch. Somehow, the dev became inspired and may now mentally visualize the entirety of the game all at once. The next task is to break that "entirety" up into manageable groups of components that when combined become what the dev initially dreamed up. This applies to the art, music, and development of a game!
In my case a particular sound that may be seconds in length actually causes me to visualize an entire song.
I next focus on deciphering this. What am I feeling? What did I dream of? What can I make of this synesthesia? I need a song with this mood that features that sound. I break features into smaller groups and technically produce the sound features required that when combined, fully complete that big bang
moment, and suddenly the sum of those components
is music.